Fotograaf Gina Stef

—Bent u fotogeniek?

—Yes I am, but only when i'm not posing.

—Hoe bent u beland in de fotografie-industrie?

—I wanted to do something else with my photos, to bring more joy to happy couples.

—Wat zijn volgens u de belangrijkste elementen van een goede foto?

—It has to capture the moment. When the bride cries, when the groom laughs at her or when the people at the wedding just go crazy :)

—Houdt u van reizen?

—Absolutely YES! We love meeting new and interesting couples and we're eager to take their photos in an unknown location. This is also a big challenge, to take improvised great photos of them in a place we've never been before.

—Wat vindt u het leukst aan uw beroep?

—Every wedding is a challenge and we love challenges! Meeting new people and "clicking" on their wedding ideas is great!

—Wat vindt u het minst leuk aan uw beroep?

—Sometimes it's the long hours of a wedding here in Romania that get to us, but after all if the newlyweds are still having fun at 2 a.m. in the morning, we'll hop in and have fun with them!

—Wat ziet u de toekomst van fotografie?

—Nowadays if you don't know Photoshop you're like dead in the water. Photography won't change much, as opposed to the way we as photographers will present the final result to our clients.

—Wat is er bijzonder aan het fotografiegenre waarin u zich specialiseert?

—Before any event we always have butterflies in our stomachs and that's a good thing, because it pushes us further. We love the rush of the events and the general happiness of the people attending the wedding.

—Hoe gaat u om met kritiek?

—We try to prevent it, usually we under-promise and over-deliver. If by any chance our clients are not fully satisfied, we communicate on what's wrong and we try to correct that.

—Zijn er bepaalde trends in fotografie?

—The vintage, chabby-chic trends are on fire! And we love them, all the decors give a wedding a great feel!

—Welke criteria moet de klant hanteren bij het kiezen van een fotograaf?

—On the initial meeting, they should analyze whether they "click" with the photographer. If you're not on the same mindset, then you might as well find another one.

—Wat is er totaal uit den boze bij het fotograferen?

—It all comes down to common-sense. A wedding photographer is not (or should not) seek the tabloid-like, outrageous pictures. He/she should always comply with the client's wishes and demands.

—Welke details die vaak onopgemerkt gaan, kan een fotograaf vastleggen?

—It's that split-second facial expression on somebody's face, or some short event that nobody saw because they were focused on the bride and groom.

—Wat beïnvloedt de waarde van een foto? Wat zijn de elementen ervan?

—I think it's all about the "feel". No matter how you composed it, no matter how blurry it is.

—Welke persoon kan volgens u symbool staan voor de 21e eeuw?

—It's difficult to assess, since social media is huge nowadays and everybody's a celebrity.

—Wie wil u graag fotograferen?

—We would like to shoot a tattooed open-minded rockers couple, in Moab, Utah :)

—Heeft u bepaalde taboes op professioneel vlak?

—Yes, to never disappoint our clients!

—Met wie zou u graag fotograferen?

—It would be a dream to shoot with Sergey Ivanov, Sal Cincotta or Aaron Nace!

—Waar maakt u zich zorgen over en waarom?

—I always worry that we won't be able to satisfy all our clients' needs. But so far, so good.

—Wat is het meest indrukwekkende moment van uw leven?

—Traveling through the U.S. and admiring the cities, the breweries, the landscapes and all the beautiful people!

—Als u een personage van een cartoon, boek of film was, wie zou u dan zijn?

—When I was little I looked like Betty Boop so...

—Wie inspireert u in uw leven en waarom?

—I see inspiration all around, it's hard to pinpoint something.

—Hoe definieert u succes? Hoe meet u het?

—I thing it's a sum of the opinions of the people who met you. If most of the opinions are great, you could consider yourself a successful person.

—Bent u liever graag gezien of gerespecteerd?

—Both, of course!

—Wat is de grootste fout die u ooit begaan heeft op professioneel vlak?

—I made only small mistakes :)

—Wat neemt u mee op reis en waarom?

—My husband, our cameras and leave behind everything else.

—Is er iets dat u liever niet gekocht had tussen de gadgets die u bezit? Waarom?

—Along the way there has been some trial and error, some gadgets failed and some we still have, but I guess we shouldn't have bought a Wii U console and a 2x extender.

—Hoe leert u bij om betere foto's te maken?

—Through inspiration on the web, brainstorming with friends and talks with clients.

—Wiens werk heeft u het meest beïnvloed als fotograaf?

—I wish Sergey Ivanov influenced me, but I couldn't rise to that level :)

—Wat had u graag geweten toen u begon als fotograaf?

—That "anything flies" if you have a story behind it.

—Wat wil u graag zeggen met uw foto's?

—People are beautiful!

—Wat motiveert u om foto's te blijven maken?

—The satisfaction of our clients and money, of course.

—Hadden uw ouders strenger of minder streng moeten zijn?

—At times I wanted them to be less of a pain, but it turns out that I turned out just fine!

—Wat zou u anders doen als u in de tijd kon terugkeren?

—Listen to rock music earlier, read more and move to another city sooner.

—Wat denkt u over leven op andere planeten?

—I can't wait to have an alien friend!

—Wie zijn uw helden?

—Lebowski from "The Big Lebowski" film!

—Voor wie kan u geen respect opbrengen?

—People who don't have any hobby, any taste in anything, any opinion of their own.

—Wat doet u in uw vrije tijd?

—I love calligraphy and everything hand made, I try to do as much as I can, apart from editing photos.

—Welke kant van u krijgt het publiek niet te zien?

—I'd have to kill you...

—Wanneer bent u helemaal tevreden over uw werk?

—Never!

—Gelooft u in een traditionele rolverdeling voor man en vrouw?

—I'm not a feminist, but no, I do not believe in these stereotypes.

—Maakt u gemakkelijk vrienden?

—I'd say that I do, but some would say that I keep to myself a lot. I only make friends with the people which inspire me and help me evolve, by having interesting argumentative conversations.

—Waar zou u graag wonen?

—San Francisco, some 50 years ago.

—Wat is het domste waarmee u ooit akkoord bent gegaan?

—I have a problem with saying "no" to things. But I'm working on that.

—Is er een leven na het huwelijk?

—Of course. If you don't make a child right away. Or never.

—Heeft u een favoriete mop? Vertel ...

—It's a photographers' joke, of course:
So there's a dinner party. A photographer's talking to the host. She says to him: "Mr. Photographer, I love your work! You must have a great camera!" The photographer doesn't respond. But at the dinner table, after taking a bite, the photographer says to the host: "Oh, this food is delicious! You must have a terrific oven!"

—Houdt u van honden of van katten?

—Both, but mostly cats.

—Wie of wat haat u?

—Ignorance and arrogance together.

—Het beste in het leven is:

—Combining your hobby and your job.

—Het vervelendste in het leven is:

—Having a job and a hobby-job :)

—Is er iets rondom u dat u graag zou veranderen?

—I would love it if the hobby would stay just hobby, not having to deal with contracts, invoices, bills to pay... This narrows the creativity, the whole "professional" side of photography.

—Wat zou u graag veranderen aan uzelf?

—I would like to learn to say NO and not bite more than I can chew.

—Wat zou u graag veranderen aan de wereld?

—If only money disappeared, people will start being people again.

—Kan u tips geven voor beginnende fotografen?

—Take lots of photos, then analyze them and develop your own style. And most importantly, never stop!

—Als buitenaardse wezens naar de Aarde komen en u bent de eerste persoon die ze ontmoeten, wat zal u hen dan zeggen?

—Most surely they won't understand a word, but I'll beg them to share some wisdom here on Earth!

—U wordt gevraagd om een film te maken, welk genre wordt het?

—Some moody drama

—Morgen zal ik ... doen

—some portraits, for sure!